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Friday, July 22, 2011

50 Women Game-Changers in Food - #7 Madhur Jaffrey - Prawn Curry

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The weeks are rolling by, and the group of bloggers who are working their way through the Gourmet Live list of 50 Women Game-Changers in food, are focusing on the recipes of Madhur Jaffrey for the week. If Julia Child and Marcella Hazan are credited with bringing French and Italian food to the American table, Madhur Jaffrey must also be recognized for introducing the American and British public to the best of the food from her beloved India. She is a noted chef and expert in Indian cuisine, but, interestingly, she had not planned on a career as a food writer or teacher. When she was 19 years old, she left her home in India to study at England's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She didn't like the food the college provided for its students and there were few Indian restaurants in London where she could satisfy her craving for good Indian food. She began to cook because she wanted to recreate the food of her childhood. With the help of her mother, who sent letters containing advice and recipes, she began to cook the simpler of the dishes she remembered. She became an actress of note, but when Craig Claiborne ran a story about her in the New York Times, she also became known for her cooking and writing skills. She considered her cooking career to be accidental, but she took it as seriously as she did her work in the theater. She has, to date, written 15 cookbooks and one memoir. That's mighty serious.

I've chosen a light but spicy shrimp dish to represent her cooking. The preparation comes from Southern India, and, while it's delicious, it is spiced with a quantity of cayenne pepper that may be too much for some palates. While purists will be unhappy, I suggest that those of you who have a low heat tolerance cut way back on the amount of cayenne used to make this dish. I've found that 1/4 teaspoon is perfect for those not familiar with the fire of some Indian dishes. I also recommend that you toast the coriander and cumin seeds that are used in the recipe. While it certainly is not necessary, straining the sauce before adding the shrimp makes for a more attractive presentation. This is a lovely curry. I hope that you will give it a try. Here's the recipe as it was written by Madhur Jaffrey.Prawn Curry...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Madhur Jaffrey

Directions:1) In a large saucepan, combine 1-1/4 cups water with the cayenne pepper, paprika, turmeric, garlic and ginger. Mix well. Grind the coriander seeds and cumin seeds in a clean coffee grinder and add to mixture.2) Bring the spice mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and is reduced somewhat.3) Add the coconut milk, salt, and tamarind paste, and bring to a simmer.4) Add the prawns (shrimp) and simmer, stirring occasionally, until they turn opaque and are just cooked through. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper as required to taste. Serve while hot. Yield: 4 servings.

The following bloggers are also paying tribute to Madhur Jaffrey this week. I hope you'll visit all of them.

I read about Madhur Jaffrey when I was living in the UK, and how she found the food hard to believe there :-). I could understand her, I also went to the UK at 19 from Italy... fortunately things are slowly changing there, even if only for those who can afford it, sadly. Fish fingers and chips still rule!

I have read Madhur Jaffrey's memoir and some of her cookbooks. My parents are from Southern Indian and this sounds very much like the shrimp curry that my Mom makes. She is a wonderful Indian cook! I will try this recipe Mary, thanks for sharing!

i love indian curries, though i'm not too brilliant in cooking them, i enjoy eating them ! This must be delicious! just for sharing, for the benefit of your readers, if tamarind paste is not available, can try using apple cider vinegar, that might just do a little trick.

I had a "personal" Indian teacher when we lived in Charleston. Kuki amazed me with her array of herbs and spices (and, soon, I had the same array). I found it amazing, too, that she could feed eight most deliciously with very little money. I once asked her what one should drink with Indian food. She said the adults in her family drank single malt scotch!!

This is a great curry and a lovely homage to Jaffrey. Here's was one of the first cookbooks I got in college and cooked from it frequently. Turned out Jaffrey lived right around the corner from me and I would see her often at the market. She is beautiful as well as talented!

I discovered Madhur Jaffrey while living in England. Her recipes are foolproof and delicious. Just yesterday I sent my niece her recipe for Keema Matar which I plan on highlighting on my blog for a back to school post. I also loved her in Bend it Like Beckham.

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